Board Candidates for 2024

For this year’s board of directors’ elections, there were more open spots for elections than nominations received. When this occurs, a membership vote is not necessary, and the nominees are acclaimed at the Division AGM.   

The following are the two members who will be acclaimed for a two-year Actively Practicing board member position, along with their candidate statements: 

Dr. Panagiotis Galanopoulos (Practicing in PCN 3 – Northeast) 

I have had the privilege of contributing to the Vancouver Division of Family Practice in various capacities, including serving on the PCN Steering Committee and the Seniors and Frail Elder Committee for the past four years. More recently, I’ve taken on the role of physician lead for the Team-Based Care Educational Series and have been an active member of the board since 2022. Currently, as Vice Chair of the board, I continue to serve our membership with a deep sense of purpose and dedication. 

My medical practice experience spans both the US and Canada, in both rural and urban settings. I am the owner of a multi-provider clinic in East Vancouver (PCN 3), where our team consists of both MDs and NPs, working collaboratively alongside a PCN RN. We also have the pleasure of hosting learners from both disciplines, fostering a dynamic, educational environment. Additionally, I serve as the Community Medical Director for three assisted living facilities within the Fraser Health Region. 

Throughout my career, I have been driven to give back to the profession. For over a decade, I have been a member of my medical school’s Alumni Board, holding various leadership positions. On a local level, I have participated in several committees and working groups with Doctors of BC. These opportunities have significantly enriched my understanding of the non-clinical aspects of healthcare leadership. 

I am committed to enhancing our primary care landscape by continuing to champion the PCN implementation through my ongoing work on the board and the PCN committee. I am also dedicated to understanding the broader healthcare system and its complexities, always striving to learn and contribute. Lastly, I believe strongly in the value of organizational membership, and I am committed to improving access and promoting the benefits that these organizations provide to their members. 

Dr. Ramita Verma (Practicing in PCN 1 – City Centre) 

My name is Ramita Verma, I am a new-to-practice family physician in my first five years. I completed medical school at Queen’s University, Family Practice Residency at UBC-Victoria and an enhanced skills fellowship in HIV, Hepatitis, Substance Use, and Mental Health at St. Paul’s hospital.

I have been a practicing family physician for just over two years and currently work full time as a longitudinal family doctor in PCN-1 Downtown Vancouver. My panel comprises of all ages and genders with special populations of new families, BIPOC individuals, and people living with HIV.

I have been involved with Divisions since my residency program where I served as a co-chair on the Resident Engagement Working Group from 2020-2022 and was on the Board of Directors for the South Island Divisions of Family Practice during the same term. During this period, I worked with the Victoria Division and their resident representatives to create meaningful collaborations and events geared towards family practice residents. This included the urban locum pilot project, a resident-focused 2-day retreat focusing on wellness and the transition to staffhood, as well as local events for locum opportunities and mentorship. We received very positive feedback from our residents about the types of events we organized for them and the value that it provided for each stage of training.

I served as the Family Medicine representative for all 4 years at Queen’s University during my training as well. I have a passion for longitudinal family practice and saw firsthand what my colleagues plans were when transitioning from training to staff-hood and why those decisions were being made (whether it was toward or away from longitudinal practice). I am passionate about working in teams and making positive changes for family physicians and hope to bring my experiences and lens to the board. I believe I am a strong collaborator and team member and genuinely value hearing different perspectives before coming to conclusions on the best path forward.

I see all of the strategic priorities as being important and requiring careful consideration. As a participant in the PCN 1 steering committee and having experienced the benefits of the PCN with the interprofessional team I am encouraged to further develop the PCN’s in a way that serves our patients while bridging gaps in care that physicians are facing. With a heavily BIPOC population in my panel and being a visible minority myself, I hope to bring the lens of BIPOC populations to the board to find ways in meeting our communities’ needs as Vancouver’s population continues to grow and diversify. Patient access and attachment is also a high priority to me as it is a major factor in patient wellness and safety.  

The following is the one member who will be acclaimed for a one-year Resident board member position, along with their candidate statement: 

Dr. Andrew Jeong (Resident, R2) 

I am running for a board position with the Vancouver Division as I hope to contribute an impactful resident lens to family medicine initiatives and evolve my skills to become a better physician leader in the future. Although I have not been involved with the Vancouver Division in a formal capacity, I have appreciated the numerous functions that the Division supports in both clinical and non-clinical settings including PCN initiatives as well as reminders of social events, continued education, and career opportunities that help me feel empowered and connected.

I bring several strengths. I have a strong history of representing medical trainee voices, including through my co-lead resident experiences at the St. Paul’s CMG site. I also recognize the nuances and challenges of impacting systemic change. An informed, unified voice is critical for advocacy, which I hope to contribute to in the Division. Examples of this include speaking to members of parliament about health policy funding, celebrating the new longitudinal payment model for family physicians with BC’s MLAs while representing the Resident Doctors of BC, and publishing a policy paper for the Ontario Medical Student Association on reducing mistreatment in medical training. Finally, I am committed to advancing equity for our patients and colleagues as part of the board. With every change or policy action, our re-balancing of time or resource allocation can disproportionately affect underprivileged individuals. I hope to utilize the reflections I had as an EDI representative for my medical school cohort to remind me in considering our unique opportunity as physician leaders to elevate others in need – for not only patients, but colleagues as well.

I love family medicine and the potential that we have as leaders in the field to elevate care across our community. I believe that by optimization of systemic challenges, family physicians can thrive even further. With this perspective, I consider some of the most important priorities for the Division as supporting Patient Medical Homes (PMHs), streamlining patient access, and maintaining system influence. PMHs ultimately represent the goal for primary care across BC. Enabling more practices to adopt a PMH model through practice management support will help support robust practice improvement, improve patient care, and inspire more trainees to consider family medicine as an interconnected career choice. Streamlining patient access such as by reducing paperwork burden for unattached patients requiring palliative care will improve patient attachment rates and encourage physicians to expand their skills. Maintaining system influence by collaborating with other leaders in the College, Division, or local healthcare system to advocate on behalf of our Division members will be important as longitudinal relationships are what allows for larger-scale decisions and adaptations. I am eager to represent and strengthen future family physicians.